Why Andor Creator Tony Gilroy Wasn't Eager To Introduce New Alien Characters To The Series
Writer and producer Tony Gilroy got his start on films like "Devil's Advocate," "Armageddon," and the first four films of the Jason Bourne franchise. Then Gilroy stepped out of his comfort zone and wrote the screenplay for what became one of the most successful "Star Wars" live-action movies in years: "Rogue One: A Star Wars Story." To this day, it still has a 7.8/10 on IMDb and an 86% approval rating from Rotten Tomatoes. And Gilroy did it all even though he's admitted to not being a huge fan of or deeply knowledgeable about the "Star Wars" lore (via SFF Gazette).
Given the movie's wild success, it only made sense to bring him back for "Andor" on Disney+. But his lack of knowledge of the "Star Wars" universe has led him to make some casting choices that lifelong fans are beginning to question. But Gilroy isn't losing confidence in his decisions or backing down. As a matter of fact, he addressed the criticisms in a recent media interview.
Gilroy wants to spend more time telling an adventure story and less time focusing on politics
In a recent interview with The Hollywood Reporter, Gilroy was asked about the obvious lack of aliens so far in the series (despite their abundance in Episode 10). His answer revolved around trying to balance giving the audience action and a robust plot. "There's already so much politics in the show to begin with, and we're trying to tell an adventure story, really ... There is a more human-centric side of the story and the politics of it. There's certainly no aliens working for the Empire, so that kind of tips it one way, automatically."
Given Gilroy's past work, this shouldn't be too surprising. But that hasn't stopped fans on Reddit from asking, "Where are the aliens?" or complaining about the "Lack of aliens," or wanting to know where the non-humans are. And those threads are just the tip of the iceberg. For the most part, though, even the pro-alien critics like /u/TopGuardDog50 think the show is otherwise flawless.
Another interesting revelation to come out of that interview was Gilroy's resistance to "Star Wars" Easter eggs being incorporated into the production of the show — and his art department's gentle pushback against his edicts. "Every now and then, they sneak s*** in there that even I didn't know," he said good-naturedly, adding that "it was fantastic that the art department snuck those things in there." We're sure the diehard fanboys appreciate a little rebellion on the set of a "Star Wars" show that is all about rebels forming a cohesive resistance against an evil, oppressive empire. And the delicious irony might be at least part of the reason why Gilroy is capable of taking things in stride.